Life Mentor

The mountain wind was freezing.

At the mountain peak in the early hours of the morning, the temperature dropped with every passing hour.

Lin Mo naturally didn't feel cold, but Xie Yuling was a different story.

Even though she was already wearing long sleeves, she still felt a bit chilly.

However, before she could even rub her arms to warm up, Lin Mo had already draped a jacket over her shoulders.

"Your physical constitution is a bit better than an ordinary person's now, but only a bit. Having abundant stamina and becoming truly stronger than a normal person will still take a very long time."

"It's fine, as long as I can be by your side."

Lin Mo smiled. "Who knows, maybe one day you'll want to go out and see the world."

Xie Yuling didn't reply; she just looked at Lin Mo in silence.

In truth, she had experienced some inner struggle. Being in Class Seven, she couldn't help but hear the many rumors about Lin Mo and Jiang Yunlu.

They all said Lin Mo was stringing girls along.

But she knew that Lin Mo had a knot in his heart, though she didn't know what it was.

Was it because of his past experiences?

Or something else?

These things were like the relationships between men and women in TV dramas—if one person didn't speak up, the other would never know.

However, she didn't press the matter.

The clear, cold moonlight stretched their shadows out long.

The entire cake had been eaten clean, without a single crumb left.

Of course, most of it had ended up in Lin Mo's stomach.

Xie Yuling hugged her knees, tilting her head to look at his satisfied expression, a hint of a smile in her eyes. "I seriously suspect that you were just craving cake yourself, and purposely used my birthday as an excuse."

"What are you saying? If I wanted to eat it, I could just make one for myself. Why would I need to wait for you? I'd just devour it all on my own!"

Lin Mo lazily stretched his back, taking the opportunity to open his arms and make an exaggerated swallowing motion, before finally shooting her a casual eye roll.

"Alright, let's head back. We've been out for so long, they're probably getting worried."

Xie Yuling still felt a bit embarrassed.

"It's fine, I let Bro Fang know before we left."

Lin Mo spoke casually, but in reality, his divine sense had long since enveloped the entire Tianxing Ridge. Not a single rustle of the wind or movement of the grass could escape his perception.

The two deliberately took a detour, slowly strolling back from the direction of the public restrooms.

From afar, they could see that the lights in Jiang Yunlu's tent had already gone out. The girls had likely drifted off to sleep.

The boys' side, however, was still lively. The flickering lights reflected their energetic faces, truly worthy of being the warriors capable of battling all night at an internet cafe.

The two appeared one after the other. The people playing cards inside the tent merely looked up for a glance and didn't ask any questions.

Fang Jun, who was loudly munching on shrimp crackers, saw Lin Mo and naturally handed the snack bag over.

"Isn't Xie Yuling going to sleep?"

"I took a nap before we set off, so I'm not tired right now," Xie Yuling took the initiative to explain.

Fang Jun didn't suspect a thing. He nodded and casually grabbed a can of eight-treasure congee from his side, popping the pull ring with a crack. Clearly, he had stocked up himself.

Right at that moment, An Yuexin sneaked up next to Lin Mo as quietly as a mouse and lowered his voice.

"Master Mo, I said Bro Fang has a crush on Caicaizi, but he flatly denies it."

As he spoke, he gestured with his chin toward Fang Jun's direction.

The tips of Fang Jun's ears twitched. He immediately turned his head the other way, pretending to be fully focused on dealing with the eight-treasure congee in his hands, though his action of opening the can seemed a bit too forceful.

"If he doesn't admit it, then he doesn't. Why are you forcing him?" Lin Mo held the shrimp crackers, pinching one and tossing it into his mouth, his tone as light as the clouds and wind.

These words really struck a chord in Fang Jun's heart.

He immediately nodded repeatedly, feeling like he had found an ally. "Exactly! Old Mo understands me best! What he says makes perfect sense!"

Fang Jun wore a relieved expression of someone who was not alone in this, feeling that Lin Mo was a die-hard ally standing on his side.

However, he was clearly rejoicing too soon.

Lin Mo leisurely chewed and swallowed the shrimp cracker in his mouth before unhurriedly adding the second half of his sentence.

"What I mean is, there's no need to force this kind of thing. When you like someone, it naturally slips out of your eyes. You can't hide it even if you try. The person themselves might not realize it, but the whole world already knows."

The smile on Fang Jun's face instantly froze.

Subconsciously, he looked toward the only girl present, as if seeking help.

Catching his gaze, Xie Yuling's usually expressionless face suddenly showed a trace of seriousness. Meeting Fang Jun's eyes, she calmly and slowly nodded.

"I saw it."

"The affection for Cai Junhuang in your eyes."

A critical hit.

"Damn it! You guys are ganging up to bully me!"

Fang Jun let out a wail, nearly spilling the eight-treasure congee in his hands. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, he instantly launched himself up and dashed into the night without looking back.

He just ran away.

An Yuexin looked at his fleeing figure, laughing so hard he wanted to pound the ground.

After Fang Jun left, however, An Yuexin sighed.

"I don't want to deal a blow to Bro Fang either, but I have a feeling that Caicaizi won't be interested in him."

"Not necessarily," Lin Mo shook his head.

An Yuexin couldn't help but look up at Lin Mo. "Does the strategist have any thoughts?"

"No, I just feel that the time isn't right yet."

Great, saying that was the same as saying nothing at all.

An Yuexin then went back to continue playing cards.

Fang Jun, having run a lap, also returned. He looked cautiously at Lin Mo.

"Is it really that obvious?"

"Just averagely obvious. There probably aren't many who know."

Fang Jun took a deep breath. "Then do you think I have a chance?"

It was clear that this kid, Fang Jun, was indeed a bit head over heels. Good thing he wasn't going bald over it.

"It's not impossible, it's just that Cai Junhuang is a person with dreams."

Lin Mo's tone was very calm.

But it made Fang Jun's heart skip a beat.

"Old Mo, if you have something to say, you might as well say it straight."

Lin Mo looked toward the unlit tent.

"You should know the reason why Cai Junhuang practices dancing, right?"

As the local know-it-all, Fang Jun naturally knew a lot of information, so he nodded.

"She practices dancing because she wants to go down that path. She said she wants to go to South Korea to be in a girl group."

Lin Mo nodded. "Right, you also know she wants to go to South Korea."

Whether she succeeded or not, this was a problem Fang Jun had to consider.

It was also a very realistic problem.

Although Lin Mo knew that Cai Junhuang would ultimately fail the selection and return to Yangcheng, that process would take a long enough time.

He didn't know what Fang Jun would think, or if he was prepared for it.

Hearing this, Fang Jun couldn't help but lower his head.

Cai Junhuang was still his classmate right now, but she had her own goals and her own dreams.

What about himself?

Seeing Fang Jun so conflicted, Lin Mo sighed and gently patted his shoulder.

"Actually, I don't think Cai Junhuang dislikes you, but I hope you understand this saying: liking someone is unrestrained, but love is restraint."

Hearing this, Xie Yuling couldn't help but raise her head to look at Lin Mo.

Life Mentor Mo.